Fulton Breakefield Broenniman LLC Cuts Position in Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT)

Fulton Breakefield Broenniman LLC reduced its position in Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) by 10.4% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 1,693 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock after selling 197 shares during the period. Fulton Breakefield Broenniman LLC’s holdings in Applied Materials were worth $275,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. Forum Financial Management LP boosted its holdings in Applied Materials by 0.6% in the 3rd quarter. Forum Financial Management LP now owns 9,143 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $1,847,000 after buying an additional 53 shares during the period. Sargent Investment Group LLC increased its stake in Applied Materials by 4.0% in the third quarter. Sargent Investment Group LLC now owns 1,415 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $286,000 after purchasing an additional 55 shares during the period. Biltmore Family Office LLC increased its holdings in Applied Materials by 5.3% during the 3rd quarter. Biltmore Family Office LLC now owns 1,093 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $221,000 after purchasing an additional 55 shares during the period. waypoint wealth counsel boosted its position in Applied Materials by 3.1% during the third quarter. waypoint wealth counsel now owns 1,853 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $374,000 after purchasing an additional 56 shares in the last quarter. Finally, BSW Wealth Partners grew its position in shares of Applied Materials by 1.3% in the 3rd quarter. BSW Wealth Partners now owns 4,259 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $860,000 after buying an additional 56 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 80.56% of the company’s stock.

Applied Materials Stock Down 1.0 %

AMAT stock opened at $172.85 on Wednesday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.87, a current ratio of 2.51 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $174.07 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $188.14. Applied Materials, Inc. has a twelve month low of $158.96 and a twelve month high of $255.89. The company has a market cap of $140.64 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.08, a P/E/G ratio of 1.99 and a beta of 1.53.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, November 14th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $2.32 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.19 by $0.13. The business had revenue of $7.05 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $6.96 billion. Applied Materials had a net margin of 26.41% and a return on equity of 39.26%. The business’s revenue was up 4.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $2.12 EPS. Analysts anticipate that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 9.38 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Applied Materials Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 13th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, February 20th will be paid a dividend of $0.40 per share. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.93%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, February 20th. Applied Materials’s payout ratio is 18.58%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts have commented on AMAT shares. Cantor Fitzgerald reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and issued a $250.00 price target on shares of Applied Materials in a report on Friday, November 15th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reduced their target price on shares of Applied Materials from $220.00 to $200.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, November 15th. KeyCorp upgraded shares of Applied Materials from a “sector weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and set a $225.00 price target for the company in a report on Friday, January 17th. Mizuho dropped their price target on shares of Applied Materials from $220.00 to $210.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, January 10th. Finally, Morgan Stanley restated an “underweight” rating and issued a $164.00 price target (down previously from $179.00) on shares of Applied Materials in a research note on Thursday, December 5th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating and fifteen have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Applied Materials presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $218.71.

Applied Materials Company Profile

Applied Materials, Inc engages in the provision of manufacturing equipment, services, and software to the semiconductor, display, and related industries. The company operates through three segments: Semiconductor Systems, Applied Global Services, and Display and Adjacent Markets. The Semiconductor Systems segment develops, manufactures, and sells various manufacturing equipment that is used to fabricate semiconductor chips or integrated circuits.